Chapter 114: The Personal Troops

After handing over the grain to Qin Zheng, Pear Blossom returned to the village.

The ditch and traps at the village entrance had already been dug, and the earth wall was more than half complete, nearly finished. The deer fortifications and chevaux-de-frise had been made in the numbers of forty or fifty, and the count was still increasing.

Seeing this, Pear Blossom felt a bit more assured.

When Dagen saw her return, he put down his work and walked over. “Girl, the hundred or so people from Eagle Nest Ridge still haven’t returned. They’ll surely send someone to spy. If the whole bandits’ camp comes after us, we might not be able to hold them off.”

Pear Blossom said, “Don’t worry, Dad. I have a plan.”

Upon hearing this, Dagen didn’t ask further questions.

For the past year, Pear Blossom had been handling most of the family affairs. Life had been getting better day by day, and their family was increasingly respected in the village—much more than it had been when he was in charge.

Dagen wasn’t one for making decisions and was simple-minded. He was glad his daughter had a clear mind. Since she said she had it under control, he trusted her and returned to his work.

Pear Blossom went back to the training field, where Murong Jin was watching the team train and occasionally correcting their movements.

The team members knew that this was the young lady of Longwei Dart Bureau, and even Pear Blossom, their leader, was her junior. Seeing her willing to guide them, they were all excited and flushed with enthusiasm. Every time they struck with their swords, they put all their strength into it.

Shitou and Mutou also came along. When they saw Pear Blossom return, they greeted her with cheerful smiles.

Pear Blossom noticed the tightly covered cart behind them, and she immediately understood that the weapons were inside.

Lifting the curtain, she found that it was indeed a cart full of neatly arranged bows and arrows.

“Thank you, Senior Sister. In a couple of days, I’ll go into the city to personally thank Master.”

That night, after sharing her thoughts with Dong Yun, her sister had told her about the relationship between her and Murong Jin, and also informed her that the two Murong brothers had switched sides and were now on her side.

Pear Blossom only then realized that the sudden visit from her Master and Uncle Master, claiming they were here to check on her after she woke up from being controlled by the system, was actually to visit her sister on the mountain.

After learning the situation, Pear Blossom looked at Murong Jin and couldn’t help but feel how strange fate was. She had lost her eggs to her, had become her sparring partner by accident, then took her father as a master, and now, she turned out to be the younger sister of the person Pear Blossom cared about.

Murong Jin asked, “Do you want to distribute the weapons to them for testing now?”

Pear Blossom shook her head, remembering what her sister had said about the private troops. She would wait until things were settled before making a decision.

Murong Jin then turned to the two men and said, “Drive the cart to the foot of Dongshan and unload the goods at home.”

The two received the order and climbed onto the cart, heading off.

Murong Jin then turned to Pear Blossom and asked, “I heard from Daniu that there was a bandit raid in the neighboring He Village yesterday. You and your people handled over a hundred bandits. Is that true?”

Pear Blossom then recounted what had happened the previous day, and upon hearing it, Murong Jin was regretful, wishing she had been there to enjoy taking down a few of the bandits herself.

Pear Blossom, however, had no time to indulge in her thoughts and said, “Since you’re free, how about you help me train them for a few days? What do you think? Over a hundred people died in Eagle Nest Ridge, and they won’t let it go easily. I still need to visit some neighboring villages to form alliances against the bandits, and I need to recruit a private army. I won’t have time to do it all myself.”

“Private army?” Murong Jin paused. “Is that your idea or hers?”

Pear Blossom knew exactly who she was referring to and replied, “It was her idea, but it was something I wanted to do as well.”

Murong Jin laughed. Her older sister was planning to use this girl to make a move. Since it was her sister’s idea, she naturally agreed to support it. “Alright, I’ll help you train them for a few days. You can go ahead and deal with your other matters.”

Pear Blossom, pleased that she agreed to help, thanked her and then hurried to the village chief’s home with the ox cart.

When Village Chief Zhang saw her, he smiled widely and asked, “Girl, what brings you here?”

Pear Blossom smiled and said, “I need to ask Village Chief for a favor.”

“No need to be polite. Just say what you need.”

Yesterday, Zhang had heard all about her impressive feats through his son, who had been in the ambush team. He no longer underestimated the girl before him. He had also just heard that a batch of weapons had been sent to the city’s escort agency, and Miss Murong was currently helping train the recruits. He knew better than to slack off.

When Pear Blossom said she needed his help, he knew it was just a way to get him involved in her plans.

Pear Blossom didn’t beat around the bush and directly said, “Right now, He Village has already organized people to join us in fighting the bandits. I see that Fuping also has the intention to join, and I’d like to trouble Village Chief to accompany me and finalize this matter.”

Upon hearing this, Zhang immediately said, “This is a good thing! What are we waiting for? Let’s go now!”

Pear Blossom said, “I just brought out the ox cart. Village Chief, please sit in the back. I’ll drive.”

With that, the two climbed onto the cart, and Pear Blossom cracked the whip, sending the cart rattling toward Fuping Village.

On the way, Pear Blossom told Zhang about her plans to form a private army. Zhang was surprised and said, “If that’s the case, what will happen to the previous ambush team?”

Pear Blossom explained, “The ambush team was originally formed to fight the bandits. Once the bandits are dealt with, the team will disband. It doesn’t conflict with forming a private army.”

Zhang’s cloudy eyes shifted. “It doesn’t seem any different. Isn’t the ambush team already under your command?”

Pear Blossom shook her head. “When we helped He Village yesterday, some people in the village were already dissatisfied. They said it was our village’s ambush team, yet we were out there helping another village. What if someone gets hurt or killed? Who will take responsibility?”

“The ambush team and the village guard were formed so smoothly mainly because of the Liu family’s 350 acres of land. Even though I promised to pay a monthly stipend from my own pocket, if I have the ambush team fighting for someone else, the villagers won’t be happy, and the Liu family wouldn’t approve.”

Zhang fell silent, as he had the same thoughts.

Unable to resist, he asked, “So, you’re planning to turn the ambush team into your private army?”

Pear Blossom shook her head. “No, I don’t intend to do that. The ambush team here was formed by the villagers to fight the bandits, and I just happened to be the leader. They’re not my people. I can’t just turn them into my private soldiers. The villagers wouldn’t agree to that.”

“Then, if you form your own army, will you still be the leader of the ambush team?”

Pear Blossom smiled. “I could, or I could not.”

Zhang frowned. “But if you stop being the leader, what about the monthly stipend you promised?”

Pear Blossom replied, “The stipend was to encourage the ambush team, and it came from my personal funds. Once we finish clearing Eagle Nest Ridge, the ambush team will disband, and I won’t need to pay it anymore.”

“The thirty people from our village, I’m not planning to move them. There are many people from He Village and Fuping who are willing to follow me, so I can recruit from their villages.”

Zhang fell silent again. Since Pear Blossom hadn’t said anything about turning the ambush team directly into her private army, could he really stop her from recruiting her own private army?

But without Pear Blossom, what would the ambush team be? It would just be another village guard.

And those horses and weapons that she had Murong’s family send over, once they were hers, they would be taken back eventually. Without those supplies, they wouldn’t be as effective.

Pear Blossom could see the turmoil on Zhang’s face and knew she had made the right decision listening to her sister. With so few people now, it was easy to manage. But when the team grew, and the people’s affiliations were unclear, conflicts would arise, and it would be difficult to resolve.

Now that there were only thirty people, if they were lost, it wouldn’t be a big deal.

After a long pause, Zhang finally said, “But if you’re not in charge of the ambush team, what will happen if bandits come? The few of them won’t be able to handle it, and the village guard won’t know how to coordinate. What will we do then? If Lord Liu finds out, he might not approve either.”

Pear Blossom smiled. “I’m just recruiting a private army. I didn’t say I’d stop caring about the village. After all, everyone has land from the Liu family. Things will stay as they were before.”

Once they dealt with the group of “Ghosts of the Past,” the raid team would be disbanded. Those who wanted to join her forces would be accepted without question.

What was said by the other party was valid, and Zhang Sanye couldn’t refute it. But at least this girl wouldn’t abandon the village. However, those in the village who hoped to gain some small advantage might find that unlikely.

Soon, the ox-drawn cart arrived at the entrance of Lin’s house in Fuping Village.

The two brothers of the Lin family were outside, sparring with sticks. Upon seeing the two arrive, Xiao Lin immediately dropped his stick and ran over with an excited expression, shouting, “Captain Pear Blossom, you’re here!”

Pear Blossom smiled, “Is your father home?”

“Yes, yes!” Xiao Lin said eagerly, before quickly running inside to call his father.

Lin Mian, the village head of Fuping, and Zhang Sanye were old acquaintances. After exchanging a few pleasantries, Lin Mian turned to Pear Blossom and asked, “So, you’re the girl who cut off eighteen heads in He Village yesterday?”

Pear Blossom smiled, “I did cut off some heads, but I didn’t count if there were exactly eighteen.”

As soon as she finished speaking, Xiao Lin eagerly cut in, “I counted, there were exactly eighteen!”

Everyone laughed at this, and Zhang Sanye took the opportunity to explain their intentions.

Actually, after hearing about the situation from his two sons the previous day, Lin Mian had already made up his mind.

Now, after hearing their intentions, he said, “Recently, the bandits have been rampant, and refugees keep pouring into the village. Our Fuping Village is surrounded in all directions, and it’s indeed difficult to defend. I’ve been thinking of teaming up with neighboring villages to support each other. That way, we won’t have to live in fear every night.”

Zhang Sanye immediately chimed in, “If that’s the case, we’ll unite. We’ll guard your eastern side, and if anyone dares attack, you won’t be isolated or caught off guard.”

Thus, an agreement was quickly reached.

They then discussed the usual training requirements.

Lin Mian said, “I noticed you’ve been digging traps and using wood by the village entrance these past few days. Could you teach us how to do that too?”

Pear Blossom replied, “Of course, that’s exactly what we plan to teach everyone. Just have some of your people come to our village to learn, and they’ll see how it’s done.”

Lin Mian was overjoyed and immediately instructed Xiao Lin, “Go call people to assemble!”

But Pear Blossom hurriedly stopped him, saying, “Village Head Lin, wait! Right now, it’s just our three villages cooperating. Why not recruit a few more villages? The more people we have, the stronger we’ll be. Even if the bandits come out in full force, we won’t have to fear.”

“Are you suggesting we add Majiazhuang and Lucun as well?” Lin Mian’s eyes brightened. “That would be great! If all the villages in Dongping unite, who would dare to attack us?”

Looking at the sky, he added, “It’s still early. How about we go now?”

Pear Blossom liked his straightforwardness. But since this was an alliance, He Village also had to be included. So she said, “You two wait here. I’ll go get the acting village head from He Village, and we’ll all go together.”

With that, she and Zhang Sanye climbed onto the ox-drawn cart and drove it back to He Village to pick up Qin Zheng. Lin Mian followed on his donkey, while Xiao Lin and Da Lin ran behind.

However, Pear Blossom never expected that the village head of Majiazhuang would absolutely refuse.

“As far as I know, it was your Liu family in the village who first provoked the Ghosts of the Past, which brought the bandits here.”

“You don’t know your place. You killed over a hundred of them. How could the Eagle’s Nest Ridge possibly forgive you?”

“We in Majiazhuang have always minded our own business. The bandits wouldn’t attack for no reason. You clearly brought this trouble on yourselves. Now you want to drag us down with you and resist the disaster. Hmph, I won’t fall for that!”

Despite several attempts to persuade him, they were eventually kicked out of the village.

Outside the village, Lin Mian was so angry he stomped his feet and couldn’t help but curse, “This Ma Yingzheng is such a narrow-minded fool! When the bandits really come, let’s see how he cries!”

Qin Zheng also couldn’t help but feel a deep sense of regret. “Our He Village has always kept to ourselves, but who would have thought that because of a few beasts in the village, we’ve ended up in such a predicament.”

As he thought of the current state of the village, he couldn’t help but feel sorrowful and wiped his tears.

Lin Mian patted his shoulder to comfort him. “Don’t be sad, brother. These people won’t know the pain until the knife is at their necks. Just wait, they’ll regret it then.”

The group turned and headed towards Lucun.

The village head of Lucun was quick to agree to the alliance, but when it came to sending people for joint training and building defenses, he began to make excuses, saying he couldn’t persuade the villagers to participate and asked Pear Blossom and the others to wait for further news.

Helpless, Pear Blossom and her group returned to their cart.

On the way, they stopped by Fuping and He Village to gather people from the two villages to visit Daliushu Village and observe the construction of defense works.

Hundreds of people arrived and gathered at the village entrance. Upon seeing the neatly arranged defenses, everyone’s eyes were filled with envy, and they all expressed that they would do the same when they returned.

When they saw thirty members of the raid team training in the distance, with their chants echoing, Xiao Lin, Da Lin, and the others were fired up with excitement.

“Leader Pear Blossom, when can we join the training too?”

“Anytime,” Pear Blossom replied. “But I’m currently recruiting private troops. If you’re interested, you can sign up.”

A young man curiously asked, “What’s the difference between the raid team and the private troops? Do both get food?”

The others couldn’t help but turn their gaze toward her.

“The raid team is just a defense team for the village, they don’t provide meals, they only train together.”

“Private troops are my personal soldiers, who must obey my orders and do things for me. But there is pay—one tael of silver per month. If there are achievements in battle, additional rewards will be given.”

As soon as the words were spoken, a dozen young men immediately brightened up, rushing forward and saying, “Pear Blossom, team leader, I want to join your troops, pick me!”

“Pick me, pick me—”

These people were all young men struggling to make ends meet, often going hungry due to heavy taxes in recent years. Even when they worked odd jobs, they barely earned a few hundred copper coins a month, and such work was hard to find.

But the team leader was so generous, offering one tael of silver a month, enough for them to support their families.

Joining the troops was not considered shameful either. Some people couldn’t even get chosen to guard the gates or protect the courtyards of wealthy families in the city. Now, with such a good opportunity, no one was willing to miss it.

Moreover, they would be following this remarkable young woman.

Seeing how eager they were, Pear Blossom smiled and said, “Go back and discuss with your families first. Once you’ve decided, send one person forward and report their name to me. If I find no issue after evaluation, it will be confirmed.”

The crowd immediately cheered with excitement.

…

The news of Pear Blossom recruiting private troops spread quickly, and soon the common people were discussing it everywhere.

She had no time to care about what people said. After all, recruiting troops was her personal matter—what could others say about it?

What she needed to focus on was the issue of food.

Not only did the grain supply for He Village need to be addressed, but if she was to maintain her troops, she would also need to solve the food problem.

After Murong Jin left, she went straight to the Liu family.

When Old man Liu heard that she was coming, he knew something was off and didn’t want to see her.

But since Pear Blossom had made such a stir yesterday, he needed to rely on her to live peacefully in the village in the future, so in the end, he reluctantly came out with a stern face.

“Say it. What do you want to do this time?”

Pear Blossom smiled slightly, “It’s nothing major. I just want to borrow some grain from you.”

As soon as he heard the word “borrow grain,” Old man Liu immediately interrupted her, “I don’t have any grain to lend you! You just took over more than 300 acres of land from me, and now you’ve set your sights on me again. I think you’re trying to starve me to death!”

Pear Blossom replied, “That can’t be. After all, I’m your granddaughter. No matter how bad I am, I couldn’t do such unfilial things.”

Old man Liu fumed, “You still know you’re my granddaughter? Is this how a granddaughter treats her own family? Taking my land to please those lowly people!”

“I say, you really are an old stickler. When you couldn’t get close to the old lady, you were a lowly person too. According to the current hierarchy, you’re still a lowly person! We’re all the same, so don’t keep calling others lowly from now on, alright?”

Old man Liu angrily replied, “Don’t bring up that old woman! If it weren’t for her making decisions on her own, I wouldn’t have lost those 300 acres of land.”

Pear Blossom leisurely said, “Looks like you really don’t want to cooperate at all!”

Old man Liu grunted heavily, unwilling to engage further.

Pear Blossom turned to leave but casually said, “There’s an abandoned well halfway up Nanshan Mountain—”

At the mention of the well, Old man Liu froze, as if struck by lightning. His hair stood on end.

Pear Blossom pretended not to notice his reaction and continued, “I heard that someone died in that abandoned well, and no one dared to draw water from there anymore. But the other day, while hunting, I chased a rabbit and accidentally stumbled into it. Guess what? I actually discovered—”

“Shut up!” Old man Liu’s face turned pale, and his voice trembled as he interrupted, “What exactly do you want to do?”

Pear Blossom curled her lips into a sly smile and said, “What can I do? Nanshan Mountain is an ownerless mountain. If I find something good, of course, I’ll take it.”

Old man Liu nearly fainted. He pointed at Pear Blossom and cursed, “You little brat, were you born to come and collect debts? Just tell me, how much do you want to stop?”

“I want half!” Pear Blossom said bluntly.

“Half?” Old man Liu nearly passed out from anger. He gasped for breath and said, “No! Absolutely not!”

Pear Blossom shrugged and said, “Well then, don’t blame me for not being polite. Things that are ownerless don’t require me to notify you.”

She turned to leave.

“Stop!” Old man Liu quickly called after her, “Don’t do this! Let’s talk it over…”

Pear Blossom paused and turned back, smiling brightly at him, “That’s more like it! With so much grain, can you finish it all yourself? And besides, rice will still grow next year. Are you worried about not having enough rice to cook?”

Old man Liu was at a loss for words.

He could only be thankful that this brat was his own granddaughter. If it were someone else, his entire grain supply would likely be gone in a flash, with nothing left for him.

But there was another reason he was fearful. Yesterday, when he went to Wuli Slope to witness the execution of bandits, he overheard the bandits revealing that their original target was Daliushu Village, but they had passed through He Village temporarily to cook, which angered the villagers. This led to the fighting in He Village.

After hearing this, he returned home still shaken.

Without this girl in front of him, Daliushu Village might not exist today. Forget about his 500 acres of land—whether anyone could survive was uncertain.

Those 350 acres he had given away weren’t unreasonable.

But now being asked for grain, he was still unwilling.

“I have one more condition.”

“What condition?”

“Your fourth uncle has turned into that state. I can’t manage him, but you have to keep an eye on him. He keeps talking about joining the assault team, so just let him follow you.”

Pear Blossom immediately felt overwhelmed. Liu Youtie was acting like a madman now, and bringing him into the team was just inviting trouble for herself.

When Old man Liu saw her frown, he said, “What, you won’t agree? If you don’t, then forget about the food, and we’ll see if you can still get it.”

After all the effort put into negotiating the terms, it was all being disrupted like this. Pear Blossom was speechless, but remembering that the assault team was going to be disbanded anyway, she said, “Fine, it’s settled then.”